(PITTSFIELD, Mass.) – Following a brief break for the holidays, the WordXWord Writers Room at yBar has announced four events in January, including the return of a WXW 2012 audience favorite, poet/performer Jon Sands. Other events include a competitive storytelling challenge; an open mic; and an invitational poetry slam.

The schedule for January is as follows:

Tuesday, January 8, 2013
The Hot Envelope hosted by James Burden

8P, At yBar, 391 North Street, Pittsfield. Free.

Competitive storytelling challenge. Contestants draw topics at random and must respond with a relevant true story. Preregistration (recommended) to compete will open one week prior, online at wxw365.org. In-person signups for any remaining spots will begin one hour prior to event – first come, first served, prizes.

 

Tuesday, January 15
Open Mic hosted by Gabriel Squailia

8P, At yBar, 391 North Street, Pittsfield. Free.

Open Mic for those who wish to share poetry or short prose, either of their own or of others. In-person signups begin 1 hour prior to the event – first come, first served.

 

Tuesday, January 22
Feature Night with Jon Sands

8P, At yBar, 391 North Street, Pittsfield. $5 suggested donation.

WordXWord alum Jon Sands is a teacher and performer who has performed and led workshops at universities and arts organizations both nationally and internationally. He is Director of Poetry Education Programming at the Positive Health Project in Manhattan and a Youth Mentor with Urban Word-NYC. His work has been published in numerous journals and his book “The New Clean” was published by Write Bloody Press in 2011.
Tuesday, January 29
WXWinterInvitational Slam

8P, At yBar, 391 North Street, Pittsfield. $5 suggested donation.

WXW winter invitational poetry slam – slam with a twist – the spoken word equivalent of an obstacle course. With prizes at stake, competing wordsmiths will face a different challenge revealed just prior to each round.

 

The January schedule reflects the revised, ongoing format for Writers Room programming which combines open mic nights with game nights and feature nights.

 

Writers Room Monthly Rotation

1st Tuesday – Open Mic hosted by Emily Pulfer-Terino. Open Mic nights are an opportunity for poets/authors to share their own work or the work of someone they find inspiring (aka OPP – Other People’s Poetry).

2nd Tuesday – Game Night with a different word/literary/story/poetry game or competition each month.

3rd Tuesday – Open Mic hosted by Gabriel Squailia

4th Tuesday – Feature Night, pairing an established, published author with a local author

5th Tuesday – In the case of a month with 5 Tuesdays, WR will present a unique event tbd.

Unless otherwise announced, all Writers Room events are held at yBar, 391, North Street, Pittsfield, MA and start promptly at 8P.

Established in December 2011, the WXW Writers Room supports the mission and goals of the WordXWord Festival by offering a forum for local authors to share a direct, live connection between artist and audience through regularly scheduled open mic nights and featured readings. In addition, Writers Room helps nourish, enrich and inspire local authors and word-workers by presenting established, nationally recognized authors in featured presentations and facilitating relevant workshops and challenges including structured word-based games/challenges, competitions, poetry slams, etc.

The Writers Room is one of several programs offered under the umbrella of WXW365. Other programs include frequent Songwriter presentations, 10×10 Poetry, the 30/30 Poetry Challenge in April, and the annual week-long festival in August.